Tyson – 1, Asafa – 0, Usain on Deck, Gateshead DL

The first meeting of the second half of the Diamond League series was the first to feature a head to head meeting of two of the world’s three top sprinters – Tyson Gay (US) and Asafa Powell (JAM).

Powell has been running well all season long. He co-leads the 100 on the clock at 9.82, and has three legal clockings under 9.90. Tyson Gay started his season with a 19.41 WR 200 on the straight, but since has been nursing a sore hamstring. His return to the track in Eugene was fast at 19.76 though the rust showed as he suffered defeat to Walter Dix and his 19.72. Gateshead was his first 100 of the season, although he was caught in 9.89 in route to his 19.41.

Add the fact that they are a contradiction in styles with Powell one of histories greatest starters and Gay one of histories best finishers, and this first “Clash of the Titans” was set to be a hum dinger. The race didn’t disappoint – unless of course your man lost – as both lived up to their own stereotypes. Powell was out blisteringly quick and looked to have the race put away after 30 meters. That is until Gay found that “other gear” that he finds so often, and ran Powell down in what seemed to be a replay of the Osaka World Championships in 2007 – pre Bolt explosion! Though the time was not what we’ve come to expect from these men  - 9.94 run into a headwind of –1.7 mps. – competitively it was a classic race.

We get our next “2 of 3” match when Powell takes on Bolt this coming Friday in Paris.

Meanwhile, there was other action in Gateshead, though headwinds hampered the events all day long. And with the Diamond League once again scheduling two events back to back within two days (a la Rome & New York) it really cut down on the available star power. The best of the rest:

• Asbel Kiprop (KEN) continued to be the lead dog in the 1500 meters with his third Diamond League win in 3:33.34.
• Fabrice Lapierre (AUS) leapt 26’ 11” to defeat a long jump field that included Irving Saladino (PAN).
• Britain’s Phillips Idowu won the triple jump with a nice 57’ 0.75” leap.
• Walter Dix (US) edged a late surging Wallace Spearmon (US) in the 200 20.26 to 20.29. The surprise of the race was the sterling turn run by Saidy Ndure (NOR) that found him leading all into the stretch and carried him to third in 20.31.
• Carmelita Jeter (US) turned back new challenger Kelly Ann Baptiste (TRI) in the 100 10.95 to 11.00.
• Alysia Johnson (US) got her first Diamond League win with her 1:59.84 800. Behind her in 4th 1500 meter runner Kristin Wurth Thomas (US) worked on her speed with a 2:00.75 PR.
• In the 1500 Morgan Uceny (US) was 2nd in 4:04.25 behind Britain’s World silver medalist Lisa Dobrisky (4:03.69). Uceny stayed close throughout and is beginning to show a lot of spunk as she continues to improve her position in these tough European races. She’s definitely becoming one of our tougher competitors, which I’m sure will soon begin to translate on the clock as well as high placings.
• Lolo Jones (US) once again dominated the womens’ hurdles with a 12.79 to 12.98 win over Danielle Carruthers (US).
• And Kara Patterson continued her consistent season with a 2nd place finish in the javelin throwing 207’ 0.5”. She’s been very consistent since nationals throwing well over 200 feet every time out.

All in all it was great day of competition in spite of the conditions. The Diamond League makes it’s next stop in Paris on Friday the 16th.

 

 

David Rudisha – 1:41.52 !!!

From the moment David Rudisha opened up over 400 with a 45.50 this outdoor season, he has looked capable of great things. A season opener of 1:43.15 simply confirmed that. This afternoon in Belgium Rudisha took the next step towards greatness with a sensational 1:41.52 over two laps that makes him the #2 man in history. Only Wilson Kipketer’s WR runs of 1:41.11 and 1:41.24 are faster in history. And judging from today’s run there is more in this young man. I dare say, that at 21 years old, we could be looking at the man who will be first to run under 1:41.00. Watch for yourself as he demolishes the field on his way to the #2 spot all time.

 

Lemaitre Breaks 10 second Barrier!

Forever and a day sprint fans have asked: who will become the first white sprinter to run sub 10? Other sprint barriers such as 20.00 in the 200 and 44.00 in the 400 have long ago fallen by the wayside, but since Jim Hines first cracked 10.00 with his 9.95 in Mexico City way back in 1968, 10.00 has remained the barrier for white sprinters.

Marian Woronin of Poland was on the brink when he ran 10.00 back in 1984. A mark equaled by Japan’s Koji Ito in 1998. But just as African distance runners have dominated the sub 27 minute ranks of the 10,000 meters, so have African and those with African blood dominated the ranks of the sub 10 100 meters. So it’s rather fitting that with Chris Solinsky cracking the 27 minute barrier, that France’s Christophe Lemiatre did the same to the 10 second barrier as he won the French title today in 9.98 sec!

Ironically, watching this young man’s race (see below) there is definitely room for improvement. With his height and potential use of his levers, there is could be much more in store. I think this is the tip of the iceberg for this young man. Especially now that the “mental barrier” has been conquered. Below is this bit of history.

Confirmation in Lausanne

Lausanne was the half way mark of this year’s Diamond League. And as we hit the mid point of the season there seemed to be more questions than answers out there on the track. How healthy was Usain Bolt? Had Walter Dix and Debbie Dunn arrived? Would Dayron Robles return to dominating form? Just where is Jeremy Wariner in the grand scheme of the 400? Watching Lausanne’s Athletissima competition, I think we got the answer to these and more as several superb performances were turned in on the Swiss oval.

Of course the big question that was on the mind of most was the status of Usain Bolt. Bolt had missed the New York meet and Jamaican nationals while nursing a sore Achilles. Recent word was that it could curtail his competing over 200 meters. Taking to the track in the 100 meters Bolt had an average start and then did what Bolt does, steadily accelerated away from the field to a 9.82 win – equaling Asafa Powell’s world leader. He looked smooth and relaxed and ready to resume his season.

Dayron Robles (CUB) had similar results in the high hurdles. Hampered by injury last year, Robles has been slowly rounding into form this year. He entered Lausanne having run 13.09 & 13.08 in June, yet watched as the event was being taken over by David Oliver, who thrice has run under 13.00, including his AR 12.90 just last week. Robles confirmed his fitness with a flowing flight of hurdles that ended 13.01 seconds after the gun – with a less than stellar start. Robles looked the part of the man that set the WR two seasons ago, which means that a race between he and Oliver could become something epic!

Something epic is where it appeared Jeremy Wariner was headed a couple of seasons ago. Heading into 2008 the question wasn’t would he win a second Olympic gold, but could he do so in WR time? After Beijing, however, the question on everyone’s lips was “why did he change coaches”? As a coaching switch began two seasons of losses and a reversion of times as Wariner got slower instead of faster. To the point where the question early on this season was “when is he going to run under 45”? A 44.73 in Rome answered that question, but a dnf at nationals raised another – “is he healthy”? I think Lausanne was the turning point in his two year battle as he nearly looked like the old “Pookie” with his 44.57 world leading win. I say “nearly” because his dominating finish is still missing. But his first 300 was very controlled (circa ‘04 to ‘07) and though he didn’t run away from the field in the stretch he was still under control and strong. Watching him in Lausanne if anyone hopes to beat him they’d better do it soon before he is fully “back to normal”!

Bershawn Jackson is another athlete that had been battling with injuries over the past couple of seasons. Jackson has been healthy this year and running well as he has also returned to his old 15 step stride pattern in the 400 hurdles. With another win in 47.62, he was well under the 48 second barrier. More importantly “Batman” completely dismantled a field containing Angelo Taylor, Javier Culson, Felix Sanchez, Isa Phillips, and Kerron Clement – the best of the vets and the new blood – confirming his status as the king of the one lap hurdles.

Of course it wasn’t all about athletes “coming back”, for some athletes it was about confirming their newly found status among the world’s elite. And none did it better than Kenya’s David Rudisha. The world leader in the 800 Rudisha looked to have a battle on his hand entering the meet with South Africa’s Mbulaeni Mulaudzi scheduled to compete. Mulaudzi had shown the ability to defeat Rudisha, beating him in Berlin as he won the World title. But since then Rudisha has been a different runner as he showed in Lausanne. The two men followed the pace maker through a 50 second first lap before Rudisha took over controlling the race down the backstretch and into the final turn. It was there that Mulaudzi attacked and attempted to go past, and there that Rudisha very smoothly increased his tempo and began to move ever so slightly away as if to say “no not today”! Though only he and Abubaker Kaki have run faster this season than Rudisha’s winning 1:43.25, he was so under control that it looked more like a training run than a race. More and more he is looking like Wilson Kipketer in his prime – and he is only 21 years old!

At the other end of the age spectrum is Debbie Dunn. At 32 she’s just now “arriving” in the 400. She dipped under 50 seconds last year with her 49.95 best, but Lausanne marked her second sub 50 this season as she controlled this race handily with a 49.81 win. Dunn had looked very good at nationals, winning in 49.64, but Eugene provided somewhat of a hiccup as she finished a well beaten 4th behind Allyson Felix, Amantle Montsho and Sherika Williams. Dunn got back on track here turning the tables nicely on Williams and Montsho in what was the fastest race on the season depth wise. Dunn is definitely on par with the world’s best.

Of all the athletes looking to confirm their status yesterday, there was one who has competed this season with a definite chip on his shoulder – Walter Dix. Dix is clearly competing to show that the sprints aren’t “ a done deal” on the elite level. And his performances over 200 meters have been bringing him much attention. Once again in Lausanne he attacked the turn early and lead coming into the stretch. As with Usain Bolt and Tyson Gay, the race was over at that point as he powered up the straight to a 19.86 win – his 4th sub20 this season. He showed his competitiveness in Eugene in his defeat of Tyson Gay, and here he showed his consistency as he broke the sub20 barrier while easily handling the field. He is easily the next name to be mentioned after Bolt & Gay – pending further confirmation by Wallace Spearmon – and appears headed towards the 19.5 range. But what I’ve loved about Walter this season is his “I’m in it to win it” attitude. He’s not afraid. He may take his lumps, but he’s going to do so at full speed. Sort of a sprinting Prefontaine – he’s going to push himself to the limit and take on whoever is out there! And I wish him nothing but the best, because pound for pound and inch for inch he’s one of the toughest competitors on the track.

Confirmations aside Lausanne was a great meet. Brittney Reese got a big long jump win, as did Renaud Lavillenie with his pole vault victory over Steven Hooker. Hooker looked to attack Bubka’s record this year, he may end up trying to match Lavillenie. Geleta Burka was huge down the finishing straight with her mad sprint to win the 1500 in a world leading 3:59.28 – the year’s first sub 4. And behind her in 5th place American Morgan Uceny (4:02.40) appears to be another middle distance runner on the rise here in the states. Great competition all the way around with eight world leaders set on the day. And with only a day off it’s Gateshead tomorrow.

 

Dix vs Bolt in Lausanne – Apparently Not!

The next stop on the Diamond League series is Lausanne. And for the first time this season I was actually salivating in anticipation of a DL meet as it held the promise of a real sprint showdown among the men. After Walter Dix blazed 19.72 to run toe to toe with Tyson Gay, Lausanne sat waiting with Usain Bolt set to take to the track. And in this league of half meets whereas New York only had the men’s 100 and Eugene only the men’s 200, Lausanne was to have the men’s 200 & 400.

To add to my excitement, the gentle curves of Lausanne have spurred several very fast 200’s – most notably in 2006 when the 200 exploded back into prominence as Xavier Carter (19.63), Tyson Gay (19.70), Usain Bolt (19.88) and Wallace Spearmon (19.90) took the event back into the 19.6/19.7 realm after the sport went 10 years without a time under 19.70. Since then this track has seen nothing but sterling marks with Gay (19.78, ‘07), and Bolt (19.63, ‘08 & 19.59, ‘09) taking advantage of the wide bend. Even as far back as 1996, Ato Boldon had run 19.85 here.

So the thought of WR holder Bolt taking on the up and coming Dix on what has become 200 meter Mecca was like visions of sugar plums dancing in my head. But it would appear that upon Dix’ completion of his race in Eugene, he joined the ranks of the truly elite, and now the Big 3 (Bolt, Gay, Powell) has become a Big 4. At least it looks that way, because the Big 3 don’t race often and Dix now seems to be one to avoid judging by the events of the days since Pre.

As I stated, Lausanne has had the men’s 200 & 400 on it’s schedule since the schedule was released. And up through the Provisional start list of July 3rd (the date of Pre) that’s how it stood with Bolt & Dix slated to go against each other with Carter, Mullings and Martina also in the mix. It was announced on July 6th, however, that although Bolt is fully recovered from his injuries, that he would be running the 100 to avoid further injuries. What? What 100? There is no 100 scheduled in Lausanne! But when I went back to confirm the start lists, lo and behold a 100 was apparently added on July 6th, replete with patsies – I mean competitors.

Now, I can respect injuries and protecting oneself from injury. But once again we rob the fans of a great race – and to do so we’ve had a race created out of thin air, which gives all the wrong signals. it says that the sport will support athletes not running head to head (reminds me of the ‘06 Prefontaine Classic that for the only time ever ran two separate 100 meter races so that Asafa Powell and Justin Gatlin didn’t have to go head to head). It also says that some athletes have control while others are just along for the ride. But mostly it says that this sport is more about money than anything else. A topic I’m going to address after Lausanne.

As for the Lausanne 200, if Bolt is not ready to compete then that’s fine. Then he can sit out a while longer and come back when he’s ready. If at that time he is still rusty as Gay was then a loss is a possibility – it is after all part of the sport. But to create an event for a single athlete is wrong, I don’t care who the athlete is. Especially when it perpetuates this game of “Duck, Duck, Goose” that is played by the world’s elite male sprinters.

The world’s elite sprinters can’t run head to head any more. Heaven forbid that they lose – they may shrivel up and die! Elite sprinters can only show up and run against each other when ALL the conditions are perfect. Powell and Gay raced every week in ‘06 until Gay became elite. After that it was majors only in ‘07 & ‘08 and no races yet this year. Bolt and Gay ran against each other all the time in ‘05, ‘06 & ‘07. Bolt blew up in ‘08 and all we got in ‘09 was Berlin and we’re not scheduled to see them on the track again until August 27th of this year!

There are many things that are impeding the progress of the sport of track and field. One of the big ones is the lack of competition among the world’s top male sprinters. Every era that has thrived has done so on the backs (feet) of the thoroughbreds of the sport going at it with regularity. Jim Hines, Charlie Greene, John Carlos, and Tommie Smith in the ‘60’s. Steve Williams, Don Quarrie, Silvio Leonard, Hasley Crawford and Harvey Glance in the 70’s. James Sanford, Carl Lewis, Calvin Smith, Stanley Floyd, Raymond Stewart, and Ben Johnson in the 80’s. Carl Lewis, Linford Christie, Leroy Burrell, Dennis Mitchell, Donovan Bailey, Bruny Surin, Ato Boldon, Maurice Greene and Frankie Fredericks in the 90’s. It’s no coincidence that attendance at meets was high, and there were a lot more meets during these eras. And the funny thing is that some of the most revered names in the sport reside among that list – competing often and even losing didn’t seem to harm their legacies.

There is an old saying that “pride goeth before a fall”, and in the world of track and field it seems that the pride of simply competing for bragging rights went bye bye and in it’s wake the sport continues to fall! Because for today’s sprinters it seems to be less about pride and bragging rights, than it is about money and rankings. In the process a few have gotten wealthy, most are struggling to survive, and the fans are almost always left out in the cold. As we will be on Thursday when we watch Bolt run a makeshift 100 while Dix attempts to improve his PR in the 200. And WE will be left to wonder what would have happened had they actually raced.

Track Town USA

The National Championships were recently held in Des Moines Iowa. This year’s NCAA Championships were held in Eugene Oregon. Prompting a bit of back and forth between the media of the two towns as to which played the host role best.

It was actually nice to see them “fighting” over which venue was the best host – who had the best fans, attendance, loudest ovations, etc – because the truth of the matter is that both have very strong fan bases. Fan bases that are hungry for track and field, and are eager to host and watch top quality track and field. And they are  not alone. I’ve been to many venues over the years that have had loud enthusiastic crowds when the meets have been on par with what we saw in Eugene recently for the NCAA Championships and Prefontaine Classic.

People (USOC, USATF, NCAA) seem to forget that prior to 2008, there hadn’t been an Olympic Trials in Eugene since 1980. Yet the Trials were held to large enthusiastic crowds in Los Angeles (1984), Indianapolis (1988), New Orleans (1992), Atlanta (1996), and Sacramento (2000 & 2004). The fans showed up, were knowledgeable, and supported our athletes – just as they did in Eugene in 2008. And I’m sure that all would be more than happy to do so again.

The same claim can be made for all the venues that have been host to our National Championships and the NCAA Championships. Because contrary to popular belief, this country is full of people that love the sport of track and field – and that’s a good thing. You see the question isn’t who has the best fans, and therefore where should Nationals, or the NCAA Championships or any other “big” meet be located. The real question is why are there only a couple of big meets to share among ALL the great fans we have in this country?

You see “Track Town USA” was Sacramento in 2000 & 2004. It was Atlanta in 1996 and New Orleans in 1992. It was Indianapolis in 1988 and Los Angeles in 1984. It’s anywhere that we can gather a stunning field of athletes to compete. Unfortunately, pulling the athletes together, not the fans, is the real problem. As Des Moines found out this year hosting a meet with lots of defections takes away from the crowd. And no offense to Eugene, because it is indeed a great place to watch a meet, but everyone isn’t home to Nike and have access to deep pockets. So it makes it hard for the rest of us to host a meet the level of the Prefontaine Classic – because pulling top level fields together in today’s track and field requires a lot of money.

And at the end of the day, THAT is what makes Track Town USA – deep quality fields. That is the challenge of the sport today, and of USATF, to get the athletes to the stadiums. It’s what made the sport great in this country in the past, and it’s what will make the sport great in this country again – meets full of great competition. If this year’s Prefontaine Classic had been held in Des Moines, Sacramento, Boston, Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles, Phoenix or Atlanta it would have been sold out with loud, screaming fans in awe of David Oliver’s 12.90 and wondering what took so long to get a sub13 5000 on US soil! Track Town USA is anywhere we can run a Prefontaine or Olympic Trials level meet. We just need more high level meets to fill the appetites of the Track Towns we have all over this country. The fans are out here waiting.

American Athletes Step Up at Pre

The Prefontaine Classic was indeed everything it was built up to be as it easily surpassed the national championships as the best meet on American soil this year. Yes, it had the advantage of being a part of the Diamond League and therefore was able to boast a nice contingent of foreign athletes in attendance. But it was the performance of the “host” Americans that clearly set this meet apart from nationals, as in event after event the level of performances from out athletes outshined those in Des Moines. Which begs the question: why did we have nationals this year? A question that I will address on another day, because today it’s about looking at what appears to be an improving core of US athletes that I think is going to lead us forward into the next round of majors.

The man that seems to be leading that charge this year is hurdler David Oliver. Oliver is the reincarnation of Renaldo Nehemiah, and this year’s version of Usain Bolt in the 110 hurdles, as he is head and shoulders above the rest of the competition, running exceedingly fast every time out, and having perhaps the best season ever by a high hurdler! Last week’s win in Iowa brought him even with Nehemiah on the clock and made him the =7th hurdler ever, yesterday in Eugene he became the fastest American ever and #3 all time with his 12.90 flight of hurdles. Oliver had a decent start and simply ran away from his competition, looking every bit the best hurdler in the world finishing only .03 off of the current WR. It was his third race under 13 seconds this year and second consecutive. Only WR runs by Liu Xiang and Dayron Robles are faster – and we’re only at the half way point of the season.

As Oliver confirmed his dominance in his event yesterday, javelin thrower Kara Patterson proved that she is indeed among the best in her event. Fresh off of her AR at nationals, Kara took on WR holder and Olympic champion Barboa Spotakova (CZE) and won, throwing the spear a meet record 216’ 2”. A great result for Patterson as it gave her a win over Spotakova but also showed consistency over 215 feet as her last two meets have been well over the old American Record! Patterson is looking very good and has clearly become one of the world’s best and a podium threat.

Another demonstrating a high level of consistency was 400 hurdler Lashinda Demus as her winning time of 53.03 was just off of her world leading 52.82. Four of the top ten times in the world this year have been run by Demus and she handled this year’s #2 Kaliese Spencer (JAM) with ease, beating her by a huge .75 sec. Demus is another hurdler that is having what looks to be her best season ever, and after coming back last year from maternity leave seems to be hitting her stride and emerging as the top hrudler in the world.

Perhaps the most anticipated event of the meet was the men’s 200 meters as it marked the return to competition of top American sprinter Tyson Gay. As it turned out this race was both one of the best of the meet, and set a trend where Americans showed improvement in defeat as well as victory. In the case of the 200 we got a double shot in the arm as I believe we finally found the men’s sprint duo that has eluded us for the past few seasons. Gay hasn’t competed since his 19.41 race in Manchester in mid May, and was clearly a bit rusty as his turn lacked his usual blaze and he seemed to tire a bit in the straight. Still he turned in an outstanding performance as he ran a superb 19.76 – equal to his World Championship winning time in Osaka. That was great news for Tyson. Better news for the US was that he was edged at the finish by Walter Dix as Dix matched Gay around the turn and down the straight  and held form a bit better to the line finishing in 19.72 – his second best time ever behind his PR 19.69. Coming off his dominating win over 100 at nationals, it looks like Dix is ready to do exactly what he said he wants to do – challenge the top sprinters. And in so doing is giving the US what we have lacked recently – a strong one, two punch. Dix is sharp and getting better, Tyson was rusty and we know will get better. Together they should give us a fine duo as we take on an improving world in the sprints.

As I said there was much to look forward to even in defeat. In the women’s 800 Mariya Savinova ran her second consecutive world leader as she measured the field and won up the final straight in 1:57.56. Behind her in 4th was a hard charging Phoebe Wright, the collegiate champion, who blew her old PR out of the water with a 1:58.22. Wright has been showing a serious competitive nature this year and is emerging as another middle distance athlete to keep an eye on. Behind her Alysia Johnson also ran under 1:59 with her 1:58.84 PR and Anna Pierce (who got a late start this spring) ran 1:59.42, as our female half milers continue to show that they may yet be a factor.

Another middle distance runner showing tremendous improvement is Andrew Wheating. Better known for his 800 meter running, Wheating saw his 1500 meters improve this year as he did all he could to help the University of Oregon in their pursuit of a national championship. He ran the mile at Pre and was the top American finisher, running 3:51.74 in 5th place for a huge personal best – previous best of 3:58.16. His improved endurance over the mile, combined with his natural kick in the 800 could mean improvement in the 800 where he already holds a best of 1:45.03. He could possibly be the next American to get in that 1:43 range where we need to be to truly be competitive. And speaking of competitive, I would be remiss if I didn’t give Shalane Flanagan her due, as she held her own in a fast 5000 running 14:49.08 for 2nd behind Tirunesh Dibaba’s meet record 14:34.07 – with Amy Yoder Begley in 5th at 14:56.72.

The meet was full of outstanding marks. We got the first sub13 minute 5000 meters on US soil as Ethiopia’s Tariku Bekele (brother of Keninisa) ran 12:58,93 for the win. 800 meter star Abubaker Kaki ran the 1000 in Eugene and turned in a 2:13.62 – the 7th best performance ever. And Christian Cantwell confirmed that he is indeed THE MAN in the shot put as he heaved the ball a world leading 73’ 6.25”! But my favorite event of the meet was the women’s 100 meters – because it embodied everything that is good about this sport.

The women’s 100 was stacked. World and Olympic champion Shelly Ann Fraser (JAM). The second fastest woman ever in Carmelita Jeter (US). Collegiate champion Blessing Okagbare (NIG). Super vet Veronica Campbell Brown, holder of several World and Olympic medals. And recently improving Lashauntea Moore (US). All coming together to COMPETE head to head and the race lived up to its billing. With everyone running their typical race – Fraser starting fast, Jeter and Campbell Brown surging mid race – it was veteran Campbell Brown that got a better than average start surging to the win in a world leading PR of 10.78. Behind her Fraser (10.83), and Jeter (10.84) got season’s bests in 2nd and 3rd. Moore ran 10.99 to confirm her new status as a sub11 sprinter. And Okagbare got a new PR in 11.03.

THAT is what track and field is all about – getting the best together to compete. That’s what made this race so great. And it’s what made the Prefontaine Classic so great – outstanding competition. If there had been more events, but with the same level of competitors and competition the fans would have been doubly excited! WE don’t need fewer events or worry about how long the meet is running. We just need to bring this level of competition to the track. Pre was indeed the best meet on US soil this year. We need more meets like this in the US.